October 3, 2018

Kavanaugh Update

On Monday, “Arizona prosecutor Rachel Mitchell — who was hired by Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee to ask questions of Brett Kavanaugh and Christine Blasey Ford during last week's hearing” sent a memo to GOP Senators stating “she did not believe ‘a reasonable prosecutor would bring this case based on the evidence before the Committee.’"

From the Left

The left continues to support Ford. They argue that several statements made by Kavanaugh during the hearing were false, which calls his credibility into question.

From the Right

The right questions the inconsistencies in Ford’s testimony. They also view the allegations of excessive drinking and lying under oath against Kavanaugh as disingenuous, and are critical of mainstream media coverage.

Kavanaugh “stated that three witnesses have refuted Christine Blasey Ford’s allegation… The three swore they had no recollection of the party — providing no support for Ford’s accusations… But their statements do not disprove the allegations, either.” AP News

“He claimed that multiple references to him and his friends being ‘Renate alumni’… were merely included on their yearbook pages to show their affection and admiration for her… That must have been why one of his classmates, joining in the show of ‘affection,’ included a poem: ‘You need a date / and it’s getting late / so don’t hesitate / to call Renate.’” Washington Post

“The little details Kavanaugh lied about... aimed to paint a picture of him as being incapable of the act he was accused of committing. They weren’t trivial misstatements; they actually matter, and speak [to] his overall credibility relative to Ford’s. Finally, and perhaps most importantly: He lied under oath.”

Vox

“Kavanaugh needs two things to be true... 1) He drank regularly in high school and college, at times to excess. 2) None of those times -- NONE -- did he ever forget anything he had said or done. Not. Once.”

CNN

From the Right

The right questions the inconsistencies in Ford’s testimony. They also view the allegations of excessive drinking and lying under oath against Kavanaugh as disingenuous, and are critical of mainstream media coverage.

According to Mitchell, “Ford ‘has not offered a consistent account of the alleged assault’—when it happened and what occurred—and has even ‘struggled to identify Judge Kavanaugh as the accuser by name... While it is common for victims to be uncertain about dates... Dr. Ford failed to explain how she was suddenly able to narrow the timeframe to a particular season and particular year.’"

Wall Street Journal

Many argue that “on nearly every question and issue, the tenor of the press — shockingly — mirrors the tenor of the Democrats... [journalists] should care every bit as much about disproving the allegations of Swetnick, Ramirez, and — yes — Ford as proving them... you’re not supposed to have a team. It’s fine if you support the #MeToo movement in your private time, but you’re not supposed to lend any movement aid and comfort, never mind air cover, in your reporting."

“Judge Kavanaugh never claimed he always drank in moderation... The Times and others have gathered testimonials from classmates who say they heard the judge ‘slur his words’ and saw him ‘staggering’ from alcohol consumption, as if this were proof that he blacked out from drinking. But of course Judge Kavanaugh never denied that he slurred his words or staggered. He said he never blacked out."

Wall Street Journal

“The most ridiculous tranche of perjury allegations have to do with Kavanaugh’s yearbook entry... It doesn’t require stepping back very far to realize how preposterous it is that teenage tomfoolery in a high-school yearbook is now deemed relevant to the ascension of a D.C. Circuit judge to the U.S. Supreme Court...

"It’s certainly true that Kavanaugh tried to minimize the least admirable aspects of his adolescence... but there is no evidence he lied.”

National Review

“The Kavanaugh goalposts have moved dramatically... why are Democrats, now that they have finally won the FBI investigation they wanted into the sexual misconduct allegations against Kavanaugh, suddenly making a bigger deal of his drinking?"